PETpla.net Insider 01+02 / 2019

CAPS & CLOSURES 20 PET planet Insider Vol. 20 No. 01+02/19 www.petpla.net Christoph Thünemann, Group Director Communications and Marketing at Bericap “The SUP directive will pre- scribe that caps are tethered to the neck of single use plastic beverage bottles. The scope of beverages subject to this prescription is still unclear. The prescription of tethered caps represents a major challenge for the entire beverage industry involving massive cost in all levels of the supply chain – more than 100 bln packages need to be rede- signed. The PWC impact study esti- mates change over cost of 4-14 bln EUR depending whether neck finishes need to be changed or not. Bericap has developed a system which maintains design of most neck finishes or requires only small changes to the closure design.” Significant neck and closure weight reduction Bericap has developed the 26mm CSD closure – DS 26/14 SFB CSD (7046) The 7046 closure is an alterna- tive product to PCO 1881 closures. There is a significant weight saving of ~30 % in total due to the dimen- sional neck and closure reductions compared to the PCO 1881 closure and neck solution. The achievable weight savings are higher compar- ing with the previous change from PCO 1810 to 1881. For the bot- tlers, this results in a faster pay- back of their filling line conversion costs incurred in changing their filling line to the new system. It is interesting to note that, in addition to its aesthetic appearance, the closure offers a comfortable grip, is equipped with the well-proven double seal system, as well as a slit flex band for proper application and offers a user-friendly opening torques. The closure is usable for bottles up to 2 l with a CO 2 carbonisation of 8 g/l. The weight reduction comes purely from a decrease in height and a reduction of the T-diameter / thread diameter of the neck, which results in a smaller outer diameter. The inner diameter is exactly the same as for PCO 1881. For the end-consumer there is no compro- mise on drinking performance and quality and there is no change for the filling nozzles on the bottlers’ side. Bericap has started pro- duction, installing new line in its European plants. The product has now been introduced at various major brands. Due to the increasing demand, Bericap has invested in additional production capacity. The new Bericap 7046 is an attractive offer, in order to save costs for bottler and brand owners. www.bericap.com Sacmi’s approach and strategy in relation to the new EU directive on single use plastics Over the last 10-15 years, the focus of the beverage industry has been light-weighting: that is, reducing packaging weight (bottles and caps) without affecting performance or the consumer experience. The industry collectively spent millions and man- aged to reduce energy consumption and CO 2 emissions to levels unthink- able at the time the whole process was begun. We are the unsung heroes of the environment, as the combined efforts of all industry play- ers allowed the market to grow, while keeping environmental impact stable. At present, the challenges faced by plastic cap manufacturers and their mould suppliers and the efforts they need to make are intrinsically bound up with new EU regulations. During the next few weeks, the European Parliament is to vote on the directive 2018/0172 (COD) “Reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment”. For cap manufacturers and OEMs, the most relevant part of the directive is Article 6, which states the following: 1) Member States shall ensure that single-use plastic products listed in Part C of the Annex that have caps and lids made of plastic may be placed on the market only if the caps and lids remain attached to the container during the product’s intended use stage. 2) For the purposes of this Article, metal caps or lids with plastic seals shall not be considered to be made of plastic. Glass and metal beverage containers that have caps and lids made of plastic shall not be covered by this Article. 3) By ... [3 months after the date of entry into force of this Directive], the Commission shall request the European standardisation organi- sations to develop harmonised standards relating to the require- ment referred to in paragraph 1. Those standards shall in particular address the need to ensure the necessary strength, reliability and safety of beverage container clo- sures, including those for carbon- ated drinks. Since it has not yet been clearly estab- lished when a cap can be considered attached to the container, market players shall need to wait for the harmonised standards. Sacmi will support its partners in every possible outcome of this period of change and has initiated develop- ments and activities as follows: 1) new light weight caps for returnable plastic bottles, both with and with- out liner, should a bottler decides to move from single use bottles to returnable bottles; 2) light weight metal crown caps, in case the bottler decides to use a metal cap on a plastic bottle; 3) new slitting patterns together with the partner company to let the cap stay “attached” to the bottle; 4) ongoing testing for new mould layouts dedicated to hinged flip top caps. www.sacmi.it